Esao Andrews - “Beetle Shell” @ Thinkspace Projects [Los Angeles]

Japanese American artist, Esao Andrews has been exhibiting his work professionally for over 20 years, honing a recognizable and powerful aesthetic in the process. Although primarily known for his painting, he received his BFA in illustration from New York‘s School Of Visual Arts and, after graduating in 2000, spent a few years working in flash animation, while painting in his free time. He has also produced album artwork for bands, created skateboard designs, and collaborated with Tara Macpherson on projects for DC Comics. All of these skills and experiences play into his work, which can often stoke an array of emotions, while simultaneously feeling focused and succinct. The images flow, yet they pop off the canvas. As a viewer, it can be difficult to put your finger on exactly what you’re feeling or seeing, but there’s never any question that Andrews is delivering his own lucid vision. Perhaps “lucid” might be the perfect description for what he does, as his pieces straddle a balance of feeling crystal clear and focused, yet otherworldly and dreamlike.

Splitting the difference between the painterly and crisp, almost hi-def imagery, Esao‘s work possesses elements that remind me of so many other artists that we respect, while remaining wholly unique. The beautiful airiness and sweeping fantasy of James Jean is present, as is the soft majestic renderings of wildlife seen by Martin Wittfooth. Much like Ron English, Andrews manages to draw distinctions and create a sharp depth of field to effectively separate multiple intertwining elements. At times, there is bold pop-surrealism similar to Greg “Craola” Simkins, if not a more organic and affecting version of the mutated psychedelia conjured up by Google‘s DeepDream program and its computer-generated DMT trip imagery. Most importantly, there are emotions and worlds created by Andrews that feel pure, yet just beyond our limitations to verbalize. The pieces are visceral and trigger the mind into simultaneous states of recognition and confusion. The sense that I know this place and this feeling, yet couldn’t tell you anything about it, because I’m transported to somewhere I’ve never been before… perhaps, that’s surrealism in a nutshell.

Esao‘s upcoming show, Beetle Shell, opens this Saturday, May 4th at Thinkspace Projects. Although he’s worked with the Los Angeles gallery since 2008, this marks his first solo exhibition of new work in just over 5 years. The following description comes from Thinkspace.

“Beetle Shell’ features twenty new iconic works by Andrews. Staging a world of unlikely combinations and unexpected tensions, Esao revels in the surreal elasticity of the subconscious and its penchant for the poetically absurd. No hybrid is too unimaginable, no character too fantastic, no anthropomorphous invention too unthinkable. Objects, animals, and people are all dynamically animate and sentient, subject to the inexplicable rules of their living fictional cosmos.

The following statement about the ‘Beetle Shell’ series comes from Esao, himself:

“In this new body of work I’m sharing relics from an imagined world, playing on the scale of little lives and big lives coexisting. The title refers to a scarab beetle’s shell as both a piece of jewelry and as a pinned specimen in a case. Maybe the thought of an Egyptian Pharaoh or a science research library comes to mind or a thought about the little life the beetle had too.”

“Several pieces stand out as isolated monuments preserved like tiny fossils. Human pastimes now represented as ornaments on display.“

Beetle Shell will open at Thinkspace on Saturday, May 4th alongside exhibitions by Marie Claude-Marquis, Amy Sol, Brad Woodfin, and Jimmy Bonks. With so much talent in the building, we definitely recommend making it out to anyone who is able to. The gallery is further advertising that there will be a “DJ, refreshments, live painting, video projections and more” at the event.

Check out preview images for the exhibition below the following event details…

WHAT:

BEETLE SHELL
Solo Exhibition by Esao Andrews

WHEN:

Opening:
Saturday, May 4th 2024
6pm-10pm

WHERE:

THINKSPACE PROJECTS
[Gallery 1]
4207 W. Jefferson Blvd. + 4217 W. Jefferson Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90016
(310) 558-3375

ADDITIONAL INFO:

Opening is ALL AGES w/NO COVER
Artist will be in attendance
Show on view until Saturday, May 25th, 2024
Gallery hours: Tues – Sat. noon – 6pm